Suspended target and projectile

ABSTRACT

A swing-fit game comprising the assemblies of a male and a female three dimensional element which are respectively suspended from the hands of a user. The suspended members are manipulated such that the male member is made to swing into the female member.

o United States Patent [191 [111 3,817,527 Ghovanloo June 18, 1974 [54]SUSPENDED TARGET AND PROJECTILE 568,792 l0/l896 Pratt 273/97 A Inventor:ass Karim G o an oo, 24 3,550,309 12/1970 Vennola 46/1 soreward D Gre tN k, N Y FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS l 1022 390,092 ,3/1933 GreatBritain 273/97 A [22] plied: May 1972 Primary ExaminerRichard C. Pinkham[21] App]. No.: 255,510 Assistant ExaminerMarvin Siskind 52 us. Cl.273/101, 273/95 A, 273/105 R [571 ABSTRACT [51] Int. Cl A63b 71/02 Aswing-fit game comprising the assemblies of a male [58] Field of Search273/101, 1 R, 95 A, 97 R, and a female three dimensional element whichare re- 273/97 A, 105 R, 98, 99; 46/1 R spectively suspended from thehands of a user. The suspended members are manipulated such that the[56] References Cited male member is made to swing into the female mem-UNITED STATES PATENTS 61,087 1/1867 Munson 273/97 A 7 Claims, 12 DrawingFigures l SUSPENDED TARGET AND PROJECIILE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates to an amusement toy or game, requiringmanipulative skill, knowledge of operation and the precision of theuser. Such a device may be used to test both the coordination of thehands and the patience of the individual trying to achieve the object ofthe game. This type of game provides a great deal of amusement forchildren and, indeed, adults who use the same.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The device consists of a male and a femalethree dimensional element, each attached by a string to a differentholder. When both elements are suspended from the hands of a user, theopening or openings located on the lateral faces or surfaces of thefemale element will form an angle with the vertical direction of themale element which will prevent the male to be inserted into any openingof the female element in either vertical or horizontal movements. Theobject of the invention is to put the said elements into a specificmotion hence making the insertion possible.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevation of thepreferred form of the male element assembly.

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the preferred form of the female elementassembly.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the male element assembly.

FIG. 4 is a top view of the female element assembly.

FIGS. 5, 6, 7, 8 are some alternate embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates how the insertion of the male element into thefemale,s opening is prevented if the elements are moved either in ahorizontal or vertical direction.

FIG. 10 illustrates the method of insertion when only the male elementis pendulated.

FIG. 11 illustrates the method of insertion when only the female elementis pendulated.

FIG. 12 illustrates the method of insertion when both the male andfemale elements are pendulated in opposite directions.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIG. 2 the numeral23 designates in its entirety the preferred embodiment of a femaleelement assembly. The member is a holding ring of suitable size toaccomodate the holding of the female element or first member. Suspendedfrom the ring 20 by means of a wire, cord or filament 21 is a femalethree dimensional element 22. In a preferred embodiment the femaleelement 22 has the shape of a ring with a circular opening. The point ofattachment of the wire orfilament 21 to the said element is positionedat the outer periphery of the ring at a point corresponding to thecenter of gravity. In an alternate embodiment a part or the entirefemale element may be constructed from a heavier material such as caststeel to provide a more stable and hence easier to manipulate element.In FIG. 1 the numeral 27 indicates a preferred embodiment of a maleelement assembly. Member 24 is a holding ring with the samespecifications as member 20 of the fe- 2 male element assemblyillustrated in FIG. 2. The male element or second member 26 is attachedto the holder 24 by means of a wire, cord, or filament 25. In apreferred embodiment the male element has a cylindrical form with aconical shaped tip to simplify the insertion, this member beinglongitudinal with greater length than diameter. The point of attachmentof the wire or filament 25 is positioned at the flat end of the maleelement at a point corresponding to the center of gravity. This willenable the said element to remain erect and co-axial with its wire orfilament. In an alternate embodiment a part or the entire male elementmay be constructed from a heavier material such as cast steel to providebetter stability. The diameter of the male element is sufiicientlysmaller than the opening diameter of the female element 22 to simplifythe insertion. Also in this embodiment the length of the male or secondmember is greater than the corresponding length of the first membersaperture.

The male element 26, female element 22 and the hoding rings 20, 24 maybe constructed of plastic, wood or metal materials. It will becomeobvious afier reading the specifications that many variations in thegeometric shape of the male element, female element and its opening oropenings are possible without departing from the scope of thisinvention. For example the male element may be made in a spherical shapeand the female element in the form of a cube with different shapes ofopenings on its four lateral faces. Some of the possible variations areillustrated in FIGS. 5, 6, 7, 8. It is also obvious that the size andshape of the male and female elements, as well as the shape, the sizeand location of the females opening may be altered to make the task ofinsertion either easier or more difficult.

OPERATION The swing-fit game consists of a male and a female threedimensional element, respectively suspended from the hands of a user.The preferred fonn of the invention is illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4.The object of the game is to fit the male element into the femalesopening. In its geometric shape, the female element provides one or morenon-horizontal openings on its faces or surfaces. When the elements aresuspended, the said opening or openings will form an angle or angleswith the male element hence preventing the insertion of the male intoany opening of the female element in either vertical or horizontalmovements. FIG. 9 illustrates the difficulty of insertion of the maleelement for the preferred embodiment of this invention.

In order to make the insertion possible, the position of the male inrespect to the female must be changed to provide sufficient slantingbetween the male and the opening surface of the female element. Thethree following practical methods may be applied for the engagement ofthe preferred male and female elements as illustrated in FIGS. 10, ll,12.

The female element is held steadily by one hand while the male elementis pendulated in proper amplitude, direction and distance from it by theother hand of the user. In an instant when the male element is properlyaligned with sufficient slanting in relation to the center of thefemales opening as indicated in FIG. 10, the entire male assembly is tobe descended for engagement with the female element.

The female element is to be pendulated in a proper amplitude anddirection by one hand while the male element is held steadily in asuitable distance from it by the other hand of the user. The maleelement is to be descended where the two elements are properly alignedwith a sufficient slanting as indicated in FIG. 11.

Both the male and female elements are to be pendulated in oppositedirections in a suitable distance and proper amplitudes. The maleelement is to be descended for engagement with the female where the twoelements are precisely aligned with sufficient slanting as indicated inFIG. 12.

The same procedures may be applied for other alternate forms of theinvention where the female element may have more than one opening.

While this device is particularly suited for use by a single person, twoor more persons may work in time competition to achieve desired results.In the alternate form where the female element may consist of more thanone opening, the score for each opening may be considered upon thedifficulty of the task of insertion related to the location andcharacteristic of the opening itself. The score for the male element mayalso be considered upon the difficulty of the task of insertion wheremore than one male element is being used with a single opening of afemale element.

I claim:

I. A game comprising first and second members suspendable from first andsecond spaced-apart suspension means, the first member, which whenupright has top and bottom parts defining a first vertical axis, and atleast one side face intermediate said top and bottom parts, the sideface including therein an aperture of a predetermined vertical lengthand horizontal width, the game further comprising a flexible cord havingone end secured to said top part of the first member for suspending saidmember to hang in said upright position, the cord having a remote endfor engagement to said first suspension means, the cord when usedremaining substantially axial with the vertical axis of said firstmember, the second member, which when upright, has

top and bottom parts defining a second vertical axis, and this memberhaving an outer shape generally the same as said aperture but havinglength and width dimensions less than that of said aperture forpermitting insertion of said second member through said aperture, thegame further comprising a second flexible cord having one end secured tothe top part of said second member for suspending said member to hang insaid upright position, the second cord having a remote end forengagement to said second suspension means, the second cord when in useremaining substantially axial with the second vertical axis, said secondmember when vertical having a basic height equal to its axial length, atleast one of said first and second members being swingable toward theother to reach an inclined position of the axes of the swung member andits cord, whereby the second member is insertable into said aperturewhile said first and second cords remain axial with respect to the axesof their respective members.

2. A game as defined in claim 1 wherein said first member is a ring andthe second member is a rod.

3. A game as defined in claim 1 wherein said members have weightsubstantially greater than their respective cords for maintaining saidcords in tension when suspended.

4. A game as defined in claim 1 wherein said first member is a hollowbody and said aperture is in a wall of said body.

5. A game according to claim 4 wherein said first member is rectangularhaving four side walls, and said aperture is in one of said walls.

6. A game according to claim 1 wherein said first member is generallyflat with a rectangular aperture therethrough.

7. A game according to claim 1 wherein said first member is circular,and said second member is conical having the pointed end thereof remotefrom the first end of the corresponding cord.

1. A game comprising first and second members suspendable from first and second spaced-apart suspension means, the first member, which when upright has top and bottom parts defining a first vertical axis, and at least one side face intermediate said top and bottom parts, the side face including therein an aperture of a predetermined vertical length and horizontal width, the game further comprising a flexible cord having one end secured to said top part of the first member for suspending said member to hang in said upright position, the cord having a remote end for engagement to said first suspension means, the cord when used remaining substantially axial with the vertical axis of said first member, the second member, which when upright, has top and bottom parts defining a second vertical axis, and this member having an outer shape generally the same as said aperture but having length and width dimensions less than that of said aperture for permitting insertion of said second member through said aperture, the game further comprising a second flexible cord having one end secured to the top part of said second member for suspending said member to hang in said upright position, the second cord having a remote end for engagement to said second suspension means, the second cord when in use remaining substantially axial with the second vertical axis, said second member when vertical having a basic height equal to its axial length, at least one of said first and second members being swingable toward the other to reach an inclined position of the axes of the swung member and its cord, whereby the second member is insertable into said aperture while said first and second cords remain axial with respect to the axes of their respective members.
 2. A game as defined in claim 1 wherein said first member is a ring and the second member is a rod.
 3. A game as defined in claim 1 wherein said members have weight substantially greater than their respective cords for maintaining said cords in tension when suspended.
 4. A game as defined in claim 1 wherein said first member is a hollow body and said aperture is in a wall of said body.
 5. A game according to claim 4 wherein said first member is rectangular having four side walls, and said aperture is in one of said walls.
 6. A game according to claim 1 wherein said first member is generally flat with a rectangular aperture therethrough.
 7. A game according to claim 1 wherein said first member is circular, and said second member is conical having the pointed end thereof remote from the first end of the corresponding cord. 